Resourceful? I think not.

Are Americans resourceful? Well, I think we all know the answer to that. We are not. En ninguna manera. I would dare say we are one of the most wasteful cultures in the world. Where did this behavior come from? Maybe because we always know there will be more available. We have become so accustomed to having a stable economy that the thought of ¨what if there won’t be anymore tomorrow¨ doesn’t even pop into our little heads. Well I am certainly guilty of this as well. If something has a rip, tear, scratch, I throw it out. Don’t even think about repairing it. Food….forget about it! Americans throw away more food ..it’s truly a wonder how we all got so obese. Or if something malfunctions..how quickly do we walk away or call someone else to fix it? How did we get this way? Isn’t it time we change in these uncharted waters of American history? 

Well this is where Peru steps in. Peruvians do not waste. Anything. Peruvians are extremely resourceful and to be wasteful in front of one would be offensive. Why are they this way? Well all you have to do is look back 20 years in their history. Peru has not had the pleasure of knowing a stable economy like we have. In fact Peru over the last 25 years has suffered from a very unstable economy. Although they may be finally leaving this ugly pattern behind, the people are still as resourceful as ever. I have noticed this with food more than anything. People use all the parts of the chicken. They eat fruit even if it has a couple of bruises on it. They don’t prepare food for 20 people when there are only four…well maybe they do, but you bet your ass those four people eat every last bite. I bet if you searched the trash can of the average American, you could find a week’s worth of meals for one person.  

Also, every time there is a problem with my boyfriend´s computer or car, he doesn’t throw his hands up in the air and call it the quits. He, very patiently might I add, evaluates the problem and attempts to fix it over and over again until the problem is resolved. My patience runs out in about the first five minutes. He always asks me ¨Que tienes?¨ or basically ¨What’s your problem?¨. And when I think about it…I don’t know what my problem is. Why am I so annoyed when he tries to fix problems? It goes back to this American idea of ¨it’s not worth it, just toss it¨. That idea doesn’t really exist here. You can save almost anything. Now, some Peruvians truly take this idea too far. When you go to the center you can see people selling food on the streets. Think twice before using that plastic fork my friend. That was probably found in a trash can 10 min ago.

Now I’m not saying we should take resourcefulness this far. But I do think Americans could learn from Peruvians. We waste so much because we ¨know¨ there will always be more. Well what if one day there isn’t? Will we be able to adapt quickly enough to survive? I think we should take advantage of these difficult times and maybe change our attitude about how we use things. Pull something positive out of this mess. I think we could do it. Poco a poco.

1 year ago  /  0 notes

A true tale of crossing the border

So as all travelers know, when you enter a country they give you an amount of days that you can stay within the country. When I entered Peru, I was awarded 183 days. That’s right one hundred and eighty-THREE. I lil winking goes a long way. Well, these 183 days have almost expired and so it was time to …cross the border, Ecuadorian style. 

So I began reading my guide book and noted that the Peruvian-Ecuadorian border crossing, specifically Aguas Verdes, is considered the worst border crossing in all of South America. Grrreeeaaat. Exactly what I want to hear. But nonetheless, it had to be done. Thankfully I would not be taking on this journey solo. My lovely Latin boyfriend, Leo, would be assisting me. 

So we bought our bus tickets, the cheapest and best way to travel in Peru. Eight hours in an overnight bus and we arrived to Piura, a city in the North. The buses were surprisingly comfortable, but does this mean I slept? Naturally, no. I was so jacked up on nerves, I only got about two hours of sleep. When we arrived in Piura at six in the morning, we had to find a van to take us to Tumbes, which is where we would cross into Ecuador. For those of you who know me, I am not a big fan of vans. I get a lil motion sickness. So imagine being in a van…with nine other people crammed in…driving on curvy mountain roads. I didn’t have to imagine. This was my reality. Oh did I mention we had to sit IN THE BACK. Talk about hell. At least the views were spectacular. Driving along the coastline, we could see the crystal clear waters calling out. We passed through Mancora, THE party beach town in Peru. I nearly jumped out of the van, but I remembered my mission. Four hours later we arrive in Tumbes. 

As I got out of the van, I couldn’t help but notice the suffocating heat. This had to be one of the hottest places I’ve ever been to. Oh…but it’s winter. So no big deal. Only about 100 degrees. How these people live here without any form of air conditioning is an enigma to me. I suppose my pale freckly skin was not meant for this place. At the travel agency we met a young man named Roberto, who told us he knew people at the immigration stations and could take us over the border and back safely. This is a tricky situation. There are many chorros in Tumbes, or thieves, looking to steal your passport. But in order to get six more months on your passport, and in order to do it quickly, you need a guide. I trusted Leo’s instincts in this situation. He knows how to read people here…me not so much. 

So we hop into Roberto’s moto-taxi, the most popular way to get around here. Forty minutes later we arrive at Peruvian Immigrations. I immediately start to get nervous because Roberto and Leo start quickly telling me all the things I can and cannot say…in Spanish. This quickly became a very overwhelming situation. After filling out some papers it was time to go to the Ecuadorian side. We park the moto taxi and walk to cross the border. After bribing some Peruvian border guards we smoothly pass in to Ecuador. But we have to change our currency. Ecuador obviously does not accept soles. Ecuador’s currency has devalued so severely the last year that they now only except American dollars. How do you exchange your money? Oh…totally normal. Just approach a man with a silver suitcase and give him soles…hoping he´ll give you REAL American dollars. This is when my mind when into protective mode and just sort of turned off. I felt like I was doing a drug deal..handing money to a man in a suit, with a silver suitcase handcuffed to his hand. 

After exchanging our money, we made our way to the Ecuadorian Immigration Agency. After another bribe or two, I quickly got my two stamps saying I had entered and left the country. Now back to Peru to get my six months. So now we have to find a taxi…another tricky, potentially dangerous task. Many taxis will take you to where they have friends waiting and rob you. So we precariously approached a taxi, got in, and locked the doors. We get out at the border crossing …the guide walking in front of me, Leo behind. In the twenty seconds when it looked like I was walking alone, five men bombarded me. This was a trip that coming alone would not have been an option. We finally arrive to our final destination. Peruvian Immigration. In order to get six more months on my passport instead of three months or even fifteen days, you have to…you guessed it…give a bribe. The problem is there are cameras everywhere in this building so you have to do it underhandedly. Leo, the smooth man that he is, went to shake hands with the Immigration Agent and slipped him 20 soles. Problem fixed. Next thing I knew, I had six more months on my passport. Que alivio!

After lunch, I realized that we would not be catching a bus back to Trujillo that night. So, Leo and I headed to Zorritos. A small beach town about forty minutes away because I refused to stay any longer in Tumbes. Three hours was all I needed for a life time. 

So, advice I can give to future travelers: go to border crossings with a native of that country. And always be super aware of your surroundings…and maybe do some drugs so you’re not as stressed out as I was…just kidding…or am I?

1 year ago  /  0 notes

A Blogger’s Apology.

Well, what can I say. I haven’t blogged in nearly three months. What’s the excuse? Honestly there isn’t a good one. Only that after being sick for about two months I lost motivation to blog. After so much time had passed since my last entry, I  became…embarrassed I suppose. So here it is, a wanna be blogger’s apology. I here by promise to start blogging again for those of you looking for a distraction. I only hope, in time, I will be forgiven.

1 year ago  /  0 notes

Swim, swim little fishy

Yeah I know I know I’ve been slacking. I haven’t blogged in way too long. Means I’m having too much fun right? I suppose. Well I just get right into it…Last weekend I went to my first Pre Colombian ruins about 20 min outside of Trujillo. And it was incredible. I am such a history nerd. Huaca Rajada is the remnants of the deeply rich and well organized culture, Moche. There are two large remaining pyramids, mostly eroded from the sand. They were constructed with adobe mud bricks around 2000 years ago…TWO THOUSAND YEARS AGO. One pyramid celebrates the sun, while the other the moon. The sun pyramid was used for Administrative affairs while the moon pyramid was used for sacred rituals. This is also considered one to the most important archaeological discoveries. Their artifacts were only discovered twenty years ago! There are nearly untouched by looters aka Spaniards (bastards). There are several layers to the pyramids and archaeologists are still unearthing new finds everyday. It’s so well preserved that the original paint still remains. Insane. Two thousand year old paint…where can I buy some of dat? The Moche culture disappeared around 550 to 650 AD, so well before the Spaniards arrival. There is speculation that natural disasters played the largest role in their demise, specifically El Niño. The Moches aren’t a considered war faring society, like, for example, the Incas, but they do have a history of human sacrifice. During their time of crisis, they believed their gods were angered and so the ritual of human sacrifice was practiced. The volunteers…yes.. it was considered a great honor…were given a drug derived from a plant to eliminate any pain and then they were beheaded. Pretty intense. What’s so amazing to me is that the more we learn about history, the more we learn that humans haven’t changed all that much. We’re still driven by fear of the unknown, like the Moches.

Well I have to mention the freaky dogs I saw at the site. They are a Peruvian hairless breed well over 2000 years old…did not even know they existed. They’re rumored to have special healing powers. Their body temperature is naturally higher than all other species of dogs. They were often used to help cure respiratory infections…listen. I better be in a freakin coma if you are going to put that ugly ass creature on my body. Because I got to be honest..it looks like it’s got some disease. Sick.

After my wonderful tour of Chiclayo I was taken to a small local lake where you can watch the crazy sand boarders scale down aka tumble down the sandy hill. Looks awesome yet also super dumb. I can’t wait to try it. After a little lake time I headed out to Huanchaco…the beach! It was beautiful and I’m definitely looking forward to some beach time in the future. I don’t know how I always end up by the water. Valencia, Spain…Montpellier, France…and now Trujillo, Peru. Maybe because I’m a Pieces? Either way I’m loving it.

1 year ago  /  0 notes

Shout out to Chilean Miners y´all

Well it is a happy day indeed. As of right now, they are rescuing the final Chilean miner from the Haites. I must say it´s pretty neat to be down here while that is happening. FACT did you know that that part of Chile used to be Peru until the Chilean Peruvian war in the late 1800s? Oh because I DIDN´T. There was a huge war between Chile and Peru in the late 1800s and Peru lost a lot of land. The War of the Pacific. That title is so serious. Literally had no idea. Now you know. Pass it along, so you don´t look like a dumbass like I did.

So a lot has happened in the last week. I was a captain and a queen. That´s right people. You´re talking to royaltay here. UCV, aka where I work, has a day when it celebrates the faculty. Each department at the University has a volleyball and soccer team along with a queen. And yours truely was selected as Queen of Centro de Idiomas.  Oh I wasn´t on Homecoming Court, or Prom Queen, but I´ll be damned if I´m not the Queen of Centro de Idiomas. SUCK IT HIGH SCHOOL. At first I thought I misunderstood when they told me, which is pretty much the norm. I usually never understand what´s going on. Then I thought maybe there were joking with me, but no. It was real. I dressed up and had to walk in a small parade. It was basically humiliating. But it´s cool because the Maintenance soccer team asked to have a photo with me. After that little shindig we all ate lunch at this great little park slash farm place. I put red mystery sauce all over my food. BAD CALL. It was super spicy and packed quite the punch. After eating super spicy food I sat in the sun for about 5 hours waiting to play v-ball. Great idea. And of course we won our game..with me being captain and all. God how much more responsibility can I take on? Life is so hard bein Queen.

So I´ve survived my first bout of sickness. Oh don´t think I just walked away from that sauce so easily. No way José. For the last four days I´ve been recovering from a nice little mix of stomach bug and sun poisoning. Lovely. As I spread this mystery red sauce all over my chicken Saturday, my friend Jonathan, who´s only been living here for 8 months, warned me to be careful with unknown sauces. I gave him a nice lil wink as I continued to pour it all over my food. ¨I got dis¨. God I´m stupid. If you are traveling and you don´t know where or how the food was made. DO NOT EAT IT. I had ganas to throw up all weekend. Oh and my face was on fire from the deceptively strong sun, which I was also warned about. Idiot.

Good news! I have a Peruvian nephew! Okay maybe that is a little too much, but my Peruvian sister gave birth to a beautful healthy boy named Noah. Congrats Giovanni!

1 year ago  /  0 notes